(http://fmi.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Hajia-Zainab-Maina2-300x224.jpg) To stem the worrisome cases of child labour, child trafficking, street begging and hawking by school-age children in the country, State Governments have been charged to ensure the establishment of Family and Customary Courts in their states in line with the provisions of the country's Child Rights Act.
Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina gave the charge on Tuesday in Abuja while making her presentation at the ongoing 2013 Ministerial Platform.
The Minister insisted that the passage of the Child Rights' Act and the establishment of Family and Customary Courts will ensure the full implementation of the provisions of the Act as well as go a long way in addressing issues bordering on the wellbeing of Nigerian children.
Hajiya Maina who cited the recent reported cases of Baby Factories in parts of the country, noted that if all state governments in the country had passed the Child Rights Act into law, the nation's law enforcement agencies would be adequately empowered to meet out justice to the perpetrators of the act, while also noting that the existence of the law would also serve as a deterrent to others.
The Minister told her audience that "the Ministry in its efforts to carry out the mandate of providing an enabling environment for the total well-being and development of the Nigerian Child to realize his or her potentials through the Advocacy Strategy and Social Mobilization, has continued to dialogue" with states that were yet to pass the Child Rights' Act into law.
(http://fmi.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/IMG_0664.jpg) (http://fmi.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/IMG_0664.jpg)Hon. Minister of Women Affairs; Hajiya Zainab Maina and Hon. Minister of Information; Labaran Maku According to her, 13 (Thirteen) States were yet to domesticate the Act, adding that the 23 States and the Federal Capital Territory, that have passed the Child Rights'Act into law were yet to establish the Family and Customary Courts.
She therefore encouraged the states to give all necessary support to the speedy implementation of the provisions of the Act.
She further disclosed that a National Priority Agenda on Children has been developed by her Ministry. "The Ministry, in collaboration with USAID, Office of the Special Assistant to the President on MDGs and other Partners, has developed a National Priority Agenda (NPA) for Vulnerable Children in Nigeria.
"This is an 8-year Strategic Frame-work to guide the multi-sectoral implementation of the objectives and strategies of Vision 20:2020 on the Nigerian Child. This is with a view to holistically address all issues and concerns affecting the survival, welfare and development of all categories of Nigerian Children", Maina stated.
Hajiya Maina, meanwhile, thanked President Goodluck Jonathan for his intervention to rejig activities at the construction site of the Abuja National Children's Resource Centre.
She said the project, which has been abandoned since 2008 due to lack of budgetary support, is now back on its feet as a result of the allocation of substantial funding by the Administration to the project under the current financial year.
"Already, the Contractor has moved to the site, and it is expected that the project will be completed and commissioned by the end of next year. When completed, the Centre will in addition to housing the National Children's Parliament, serve as a one-stop referral point on all issues and concerns on the Nigerian children", Maina informed.
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Federal Ministry of Information (FMI) Nigeria